Beware of kids with disposable cameras

May 1, 2012

I was given a disposable camera as part of a goody bag on a trip I took for work last week. Yes, they still make disposable cameras apparently.

Well, I decided it would be a nice gift upon my return for our 3-year-old - her first real camera and something that could take a beating with no sweat off of our backs.

It quickly entered my mind that maybe 3 is too young to have an operable camera - especially one that's not digital and the photos can't be deleted immediately.

You see, she has become a pint-sized paparazzi in our household.

Aside from taking plenty of extreme close-up shots of our baby, she has been able to weasel herself into places that cameras should not be allowed.

You guessed it - the bathroom.

And her parents have become her favorite subject matter. Now you see the scope of our dilemma.

One time, she decided to enter the bathroom with the camera pointed at me right after my shower. Luckily, I got just enough clothes on so we don't get sent to jail for getting the photos developed.

For days we lived in fear that she would barge in anytime and shout "smile" before clicking off a shot. But we've been safe lately as her young mind has moved on to the next toy and her camera has laid dormant for a couple of days.

I'm beginning to think there's a good reason why we let her play with broken cameras and outdated cell phones - as now we have seen how actual working things can be dangerous.

Luckily, when she decides again to take up her shutterbug ways, there are only a few exposures left on the camera. The next step after they are all used up will be deciding whether we have the guts to get photos she took developed.

I think we plan to risk it just so she can show off her photography skills - although I'm willing to bet many of the photos will have an outline of one of her fingers on it. I'm also pretty sure she took a couple of photos backwards so we are bound to develop a few photos with a pair of nostrils or eyes and that's it. Let's hope getting the other photos printed will not get us into trouble.

Because we're still not entirely sure of the subject matter on all the photos on that camera.

Wish us luck.

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Reporter Andrew Potter is a Tuesday columnist for the Times-Republican. The views expressed in this column are personal views of the writer and don't necessarily reflect the views of the T-R. Contact Andrew Potter at 641-753-6611 or apotter@timesrepublican.com